iMentor has been administering surveys in NYC and with partner affiliates for many years.  Over time, several questions have regularly been asked during survey administration.  Each of these is listed below and can be clicked to quickly navigate to the answer. 

• How many surveys are there each year?
• Who gets invited to surveys?
• Who invites mentees and mentors to surveys?
• What questions are on each survey?
• Should I plan on using time in the classroom to administer surveys to mentees?
• Is survey completion mandatory?
• What are some best practices for administering surveys?
• Where can I see response rates?
• How long are survey administration periods?
• When should mentees and mentors take each survey?
• What if I need more time to administer a survey?
• Can I see mentee and mentor survey responses?
• How are mentees and mentors notified that they have been invited to a survey?
• If a mentor doesn't see the survey invitation, what should they do?
• Can mentees and mentors return to the survey if they are unable to complete it in one sitting?
• Does the survey save responses as it is completed?

If you have a question regarding survey administration that isn't addressed above, send an email to [email protected]. 

How many surveys are there each year?

Mentees and mentors complete surveys three times a year. There is a beginning, mid-year, and end-of-year survey for both mentees and mentors.  To learn more about each survey administration and survey content, click here 

Who gets invited to surveys?

In order to get invited to a survey, mentees and mentors must meet certain criteria.  Match status and match duration are the two main factors determining who gets invited.  For more detailed information, see the table below.

Survey invitations are handled by different teams, depending on the site (i.e., iMentor Chicago, iMentor NYC, BBBS Lone Star). Official decisions around ownership of survey invitations will be communicated prior to survey administration. During the 2015-16 program year, the following teams managed survey invitations at each site:

Who invites mentees and mentors to surveys?

• iMentor NYC: Program Operations
• iMentor Chicago: Research and Evaluation
• Partner Programs: Staff at each partner program with guidance from iMentor partnership managers

What questions are on each survey?

The major topics on the mentee and mentor surveys are presented in the table below.  Although there are some minor differences in topics depending on a respondent’s grade or tenure in our program, the general content of the surveys is the same for all participants.

Should I plan on using time in the classroom to administer surveys to mentees?

Yes.  PCs have reported that blocking off class time for mentees to complete surveys in class is the most effective way of ensuring they complete the survey in one sitting.  There is an accompanying lesson on canvas explaining the importance of surveys and survey data.  This lesson should be done before administering the beginning of year survey. You can find that for each grade level in the Mastering the Curriculum section of the Learning Center.

Is survey completion mandatory?

Mentees and mentors cannot be forced to complete the survey.  Failing to complete the survey does not impact a mentee’s or mentor’s status in our program.  However, survey completion is strongly encouraged as it provides a space for program participants' voices to be heard regarding their experience.  Collecting survey data also helps us measure the effectiveness of programming.

What are some best practices for administering surveys?

Check out the Learning Center article: Survey Administration Best Practices, which outlines field-tested strategies for mentee and mentors survey administration.  

Where can I see response rates?

You can find your response rates on the iMentor Platform. 

How long are survey administration periods?

The survey administration window depends on the survey. The beginning and end of year survey windows tend to be longer because school partners start and end their school years at different times. 

• The beginning of year survey typically opens when the first site (iMentor or partner programs) launches for the year.  Historically, this has been in late August. The survey closes after the bulk of matching is done for the year, typically prior to winter break
• The mid-year survey opens in January and remains open until the mid to late February
• The end of year survey launches about a month before sites begin winding down for the year.  In 2015-16, the post-survey is launching at the end of March and will remain open until the middle of June

When should mentees and mentors take each survey?

The best time to take each survey depends on a number of factors which you should consider in concert with your Manager to identify when you should administer a survey in the classroom.  With respect to time management, mentees and mentors should complete the survey within one month of the date they are invited.

Some examples of factors you might consider include:

• Matching schedule
• When/Where the survey can fit into the lesson scope and sequence
• School schedule (i.e., holiday breaks, standardized testing)

What if I need more time to administer a survey?

If more time is needed to administer a survey, consult with your manager and notify the Research and Evaluation team.  Historically, exceptions have been made to elongate survey administration periods in certain cases.

Can I see mentee and mentor survey responses?

The Research and Evaluation Team creates live online reports where you can access a summary of your survey results.  At this time, you cannot export raw survey data from the iMentor Platform. Reports and raw data can be accessed by reaching out to  iMentor’s Research and Evaluation team or your partnership manager. Typically, the data will get sent out once survey administration closes.  However, if you need your data earlier do not hesitate to ask!  

Please note that if you are an iMentor NYC PC in the external evaluation, your post survey data will not be available until later in the summer. 

How are mentees and mentors notified that they have been invited to a survey?

Once a mentee or mentor is invited to the survey a notification email gets sent to the personal email account they provided on the Platform. They will see a pop-up notification prompting them to take the survey immediately upon login to the iMentor Platform. It is possible to close the pop-up and ignore the survey, which may be appropriate in some circumstances. However, the pop up will reappear every time the person logs-in until the invited party completes the survey or the survey closes.

If a mentor doesn't see the survey invitation, what should they do?

First, ensure that the mentor was, in fact, invited to the survey.

If i mentor claims to have not received an email notifying them that they have been invited to a survey, they may want to search their spam folder for an email from [email protected].  They can also be prompted to login to the iMentor Platform where they should see a pop-up notification linking them to the survey. 

If the mentor is confirmed as having been invited to the survey but does not have a notification email or a pop-up notification upon logging into the iMentor Platform, contact Platform Support.  In your message, include the mentors name and partner site.

Can mentees and mentors return to the survey if they are unable to complete it in one sitting?

The Research and Evaluation team strongly recommends that mentees and mentors complete the survey in one sitting.  However if this is not possible, they can login at another time to complete the survey.  The survey is split into several pages. It saves each time the user moves to the next page in the survey. 

Does the survey save responses as it is completed?

Survey responses are saved each time the respondent continues to another page (i.e., clicks the "next" button)